A 23-year-old soldier from Texas has died in Afghanistan after an insurgent attack with a roadside bomb.

According to a Defense Department statement Monday, Cpl. Juan P. Navarro of Austin died Saturday in Kandahar province of southern Afghanistan. He was assigned to 1st Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment, 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash.

A surge in Afghan and coalition forces during the past two years has routed Taliban fighters from many of their strongholds in the south, but the insurgents have stepped up their attacks this summer to take back key areas.

So far this year, more than 225 NATO service members have been killed in Afghanistan.